- Sternes cave system: 10.5 km mapped length, 700 m depth, ranked second in Greece.
- Ongoing international expeditions continue to chart Crete’s hidden underground world.
- The Municipality of Sfakia actively supports the research and exploration.
- The Sternes summit at 2,335 m offers unmatched panoramic views of the White Mountains.
At 2,050 meters above sea level, in the rugged heart of the White Mountains, lies one of Greece’s most remarkable underground landscapes: the Sternes cave system. With more than 10 kilometers of mapped passages and a depth reaching 700 meters, it ranks as the second-largest of its kind in the country. For speleologists around the world, Sternes has become a reference point, a benchmark of Crete’s geological mysteries, and a jewel in the crown of Sfakia’s wild terrain.
This season, forty cave explorers from Greece and abroad have gathered there for a multi-day mission. Their work continues nearly a decade of research that has slowly unveiled the unknown underground face of Crete. Supplies, communication, and moral support came directly from the Mayor of Sfakia, Ioannis Zervos, who visited the camp and spoke with the team. His presence confirmed the municipality’s determination to highlight not only Sternes but the extraordinary nature of the White Mountains themselves.
Adventure Above Ground
For visitors, Sternes is not just a scientific milestone. The White Mountains surrounding the cave are a paradise for hikers, climbers, and seekers of raw, authentic experience. Trails wind through plateaus, ridges, and ravines where horizons open in sudden, dizzying vistas. In the villages below, Sfakian hospitality offers weary travelers homemade pies, mountain honey, and the warmth of a community that has learned to live alongside its fierce landscape.
Next year marks ten years of continuous exploration at Sternes—a milestone that will underline its importance not only to speleology, but also to Crete’s emerging profile in alternative tourism, knowledge, and adventure.
The Summit of Sternes
Beyond the cave lies another wonder: the Sternes peak itself, standing at 2,335 meters. It is the eighth-highest summit of the White Mountains, but in terms of position and perspective, it may be the most remarkable. Rising at the exact center of the range, it offers an unparalleled 360-degree view, a panorama of stone and silence unmatched by any other summit in Crete.
From Sternes, climbers can gaze westward toward Pachnes, the highest peak of the range, though its vistas fall short of Sternes’s sweep. Around it rise names etched into local lore: Svourichti, the jagged Kakovoli, Trohari with Thodoris, Bournelos, Kastro with its neighbor Fanari, and the clustered Soroi—Gres, Askifiotikos, Mesa. Even Mount Psiloritis and the mountains of southern Rethymno stand visible in the far distance.
What makes Sternes extraordinary is not just its height, but the sense of standing in the middle of a stone sea. From its summit, one looks out over the entire “mountain desert” of Sfakia, a barren, lunar landscape unique in the northern hemisphere. Black sinkholes of Mavri Lakki, the haunting hollows of Pavlia’s Halara, and the raw expanse between Agkathopi and Ammoutsera all stretch into view.
Crete’s Twin Monument
Together, the Sternes cave below and the Sternes peak above form a natural monument that embodies the essence of the White Mountains: mystery beneath, majesty above. They remind visitors that Crete’s story is not only about beaches and palaces, but also about the untamed wilderness at its core.
As 2026 approaches, and a decade of exploration is marked, Sternes stands as both a scientific landmark and an invitation—a place where Crete connects knowledge with experience, geology with myth, and travelers with the raw truth of nature.
